


Distorted Truths

by N1t3sh4d3



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Angst and Tragedy, Autumn Langst Gift Exchange 2018, Blood, Blood and Injury, Car Accidents, Character Turned Into a Ghost, Crash Landing, False Memories, Heavy Angst, Hurt No Comfort, Keith/Lance (Voltron) Angst, Lance (Voltron) Angst, Langst, M/M, Near Death Experiences, Psychological Horror, Repressed Memories, dream reality
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-30
Updated: 2018-09-30
Packaged: 2019-07-20 14:43:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,839
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16139396
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/N1t3sh4d3/pseuds/N1t3sh4d3
Summary: After a serious accident, things don't seem right to Lance. And where the hell is Keith?





	Distorted Truths

**Author's Note:**

> This was for the [Langst Autumn Event 2k18](https://langstronevent2k18.tumblr.com/) and is my gift to [Dark_Strange_Night](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dark_Strange_Night/pseuds/Dark_Strange_Night) I hope you enjoy the angst!

          It had been horrific. An accident blocked the road in front of them. It looked like someone had slammed into a tree. They were going to get out, to see how they could help, when suddenly another car came careening around bend. The next thing Lance knew, they were thrown into a violent tailspin. Glass flew everywhere, the screeching of tires echoing down the road as their car crumbled.

          He looked over to see Keith slumped over in the seat. Lance shakily managed to untangle himself from the seatbelt. He wiggled through the window of the driver side door. Racing around the car, fighting off the waves of dizziness, Lance wrenched open the passenger door.  
  
          Keith was sitting a little too still. Bruises speckled the side of his face, where are the airbag hadn't deployed properly. Blood was running down the side of his head. A deep gash ran across his chest, where the seat belt had locked and kept him immobilized.

There were people all around him trying to help, telling Lance it would be okay. That he should calm down or he needed to lay down. Lance kept trying to shrug them off.

          Finally, Lance heard the the wail of ambulance sirens approaching. Soon, two burly paramedics, in odd purplish black masks, jumped down with the stretcher. They lifted Keith gently onto the ground and began CPR. Before Lance knew it, they had loaded Keith into the ambulance. They were asking for all sorts of information. What happened? How long were they there? How old was Keith? Did he have any allergies?

          Lance was doing his best to answer the questions, but his brain was so foggy. He didn’t realize he was slurring his words or skipping answers, until they prompted him. He couldn't concentrate. The burly paramedics wanted to take Lance to the hospital as well, but they needed to move too quickly. Keith was critical and getting worse. They wouldn’t have the time to load Lance into the same ambulance. Someone offered to call another ambulance. Lance waved them off by saying he was all right. Eventually, he agreed to at least call a friend.

 Once Hunk showed up, he took one look at Lance and became very pale.

 “All right buddy, let's see about getting you into the car. Are you sure you're feeling alright? You really should let me call an ambulance.”

           “Of course I'm fine! I don’t need- Uhhhhh..I...I...I don't feel so good,” Lance suddenly started to waver. Hunk caught him, then sat him gently in the passenger seat, as Lance hunched over and threw up. He looked at glassily, blinking slowly.

 “We're getting you the hospital right now!”

          Lance giggled deliriously at that. He faded in and out as Hunk made it to the hospital in record time, yelling for help as he pulled up. A crowd of nurses and paramedics swarmed the car. They were tutted at for not calling an ambulance. As Lance was rushed into the hospital, he started to mumble questions about Keith. They told him not to worry about it right now, that he needed to concentrate on himself.  Soon he was whisked into a back room, hooked up to an IV and given some pain medication. After that, he couldn't really remember anything else.

 When he came to the next morning he ached all over. He noticed Hunk asleep on the chair next to his bed. Lance tried to roll over but only groaned in pain. That was enough to wake up Hunk.

“Oh thank God! You're awake!” Hunk looked like he was about ready to crush Lance in a bear hug, but then thought better of it. “How are you feeling?”

“How do you think I'm feeling? Like I got hit by a truck. How long was I out?”

“Well, since last night at least. I don't know. I sort of fell asleep myself. The nurse said the doctor will be in to check on you in a little bit though.”

          Lance nodded slightly an agreement. Exhaustion crept over him again. Without realizing it, he drifted off to sleep. He woke up a little while later to the doctor in the room, talking quietly to Hunk. They perked up as they noticed Lance was awake.

          The doctor came over to check Lance over, his large, orange mustache twitched as he explained, “You've got a pretty nasty concussion, young man. We also had to put some stitches in that fairly serious cut on your head. You’ll need to take it easy for the next few days, but you should be fine. You'll be able to go home in a day or so. We want to keep you for observation.”

Lance blinked. He was expecting to be able to go home today. He still needed to find Keith. When he sat up to protest, drowsiness overtook him once again. He fell asleep before he could ask any questions.

  


          When he was finally released from the hospital, Hunk brought Lance home and made sure he went straight to bed. Hunk was a bit annoyed that Lance had wanted to stay at his own home, but he promised to check on Lance. He wanted to complain that he was fine, but he was so tired and woozy.

          Lance wasn’t sure how long he slept, but when he eventually woke up, he was ecstatic to realize he was home. Over the next few days he rested, more than he ever had before, slipping in and out of sleep. He finally felt well enough to get up, grab a shower and eat. Yet something felt off. Then it struck him. Keith.

           He searched the house and couldn't find any trace of Keith. Surely he was out of the hospital by now? Come to think of it...no one really said anything about him. Hunk hadn't said anything. None of the hospital staff had mentioned him.

          Lance’s concern began to grow. He called the hospital to check to see if Keith was there. The nurse he spoke to was very confused. According to their records, there hadn’t been a Keith there in over three months, and that one had been a toddler. There also had not been any ambulances dispatched to where the accident had been. Uneasiness crawled up his back. Lance tried a few other hospitals in the area, especially the one known for their great trauma unit. None of them had seen Keith, or dispatched ambulances to that area on those days.

          He began to get frantic. What in the world was going on? He needed to ask Shiro-  Wait he hadn't seen Shiro or Pidge since the accident. That’s when it struck him how weird that was. Hunk should have been over at least once by now, shouldn't he have?

 

          Lance flopped down on the couch looking around. He finally noticed that things were just a little off. There were pictures where he didn't remember pictures before. Clothes that didn't look right. The sun was falling through the window at exactly the wrong angle. Slowly, he got up. Inspecting the pictures at first only showed snapshots of his family. Then he blinked and suddenly Keith was in the pictures as well. The piece of clothing crumpled on the floor was an old sweater, until he picked it up. Then it was Keith's jacket.

          He backed out of the living room, Maybe another room would make more sense. His heart began pounding, blood echoing in his ears. He began looking through his bedroom. Something didn't sit right. The room was more like a combination of his room on the Castle and his childhood room. A few posters, a sprinkling of pictures and far too sterile. Not the way he would decorate for himself.

          Checking through the closets he noticed his Paladin armor hanging there. Wait why was his Paladin armor there? It had been years since they had been in space. Had it been years? Wait..Had they even gone to space? Lance began to run through the house looking at other things, his breathing getting ragged. There was nothing that really screamed Keith, but there were things that were definitely not his own.

Stumbling into the kitchen, Lance fearfully grabbed the phone. As he dialed Hunk’s number from memory, he tried to calm his breathing. 

“Hello?”

          Lance's heartbeat began thundering in his chest. He recognize that voice. But he also knew Shay hadn't come back with them. Lance took a deep breath, trying to keep his voice steady, as he asked if Hunk was there. It obviously wasn't as calm as he thought, because Hunk was on the phone seconds later, asking if Lance was all right.

 “Yeah. No. I’m good. Hey, can I ask you a weird question Hunk? Uhhhh. So when did we get back to Earth?” he asked cautiously.

           “Get back to Earth? What in the world are you talking about Lance? We never left. Are you feeling okay? I think you might be worse off than the doctor thought. That blow to your head was pretty bad. Maybe, I should come take you back to the hospital.”

“No no no no no no. I'm okay! Just had a weird dream. But Hunk, where’s Keith?”

Silence filled the line. Then Hunk, sounding incredibly agitated and concerned said, “Lance, I _really_ think I need to take you back to the hospital. Something's not right. I'll be over in about 20 minutes.”

“No! There's no need for that! I'll be fine. Don't bother coming all the way out here just for me.”

“No. I really think I need to take you back.” Lance could tell Hunk was going to be stubborn about this. He wasn't sure what the hell was going on though. Finally, he decided something.

“All right look, if you really feel that strongly about it, we can go. But just give me one more night at the house. I'm really tired and I don't know what's going on. I just want to sleep in my own bed one more time,” he pleaded.

          Hunk sighed, “I'm not really happy about this, but I understand where you're coming from. At least call me before you go to bed. And when you get up in the morning. Lance, don't... Don't, do anything drastic, okay? I really don't like the idea of you being alone there”

“Sure Hunk. I promise?” At Hunk’s disgruntled sigh, Lance tried again. “Okay okay. I promise. I won't do anything…. Drastic. Although I'm not sure why you even think I would.”

Hunk only said sadly, “Just take care of yourself Lance. I'll be over in the morning.”

Lance hung up puzzled. Everything was so strange and nothing was really making any sense. Where were Shiro and Pidge? Where was _Keith_? Why was Hunk so worried about him?

 

          Lance rubbed his eyes. He wasn’t that hungry but knew he should try to eat. After poking around in the cabinets, he decided that a quick sandwich would be best. The fridge stuck in an odd way. Once he got it opened, a terrible smell hit him. It smelled like everything had gone bad at the same time. Gagging, he slammed the door shut. He grabbed a glass to get some water. Turning on the faucet only produced a dark, rank liquid.

           Lance looked at it horrified. What was going on?? He had just taken a shower last night! The water  been fine! Suddenly, the water was flowing clear, no trace of the noxious smell. Lance cautiously filled his glass, then debated on boiling the water. Thirst, which had crept up on him, turned his throat into a desert. The thirst won out. Shrugging to himself, he downed it. Surprisingly, it tasted wonderful.  Shaking his head, Lance put the glass down and made his way to his room. He couldn’t tell if it was later than he thought or if he was still just worn out. He got ready for bed and just as he was drifting off, he saw a faint glow.

          He jerked up and blinked rapidly. A figure kept fading in and out of focus. He couldn’t make out what it was. Then the figure faded. Chilled, Lance curled up under his blankets. He missed Keith. He was starting to get depressed. Where was Keith? Was he okay? Lance could really use some of his cuddles right now. Had he gotten sick of Lance?

          Abruptly, there was a weight on the bed, right next to him. Lance froze. Part of him wanted to face this enemy, part wanted to just bury himself further into the covers. He was a Paladin of Voltron, he should be able to face his fears! He was a Paladin of Voltron? Carefully, he peeked over his shoulder.

 

          Keith sat on the bed. Lance twisted around as fast as he could. “Oh my god, Keith! I’ve been so worried! Where have you been? Are you alright? What’s been….” Lance trailed off. Keith was sitting there, but he had a shimmery, white glow. Lance hesitantly put a hand out to touch him, but Keith only gave him a small smirk and shook his head slightly. Lance’s face fell. He wanted to hold Keith so badly. Why wasn’t he talking? He looked up to ask before sucking in a deep breath.

          He could see the back wall, moonlight painting the posters and clock a bright white, through Keith. His eyes darted to Keith’s face. Once again, Keith smiled sadly at him. Then blood began running down the side of Keith’s head, blood seeping out of the jagged gash across his chest and deep bruises blooming on his face. Lance yelped and scuttled backwards. Keith stood up, blood pooling where he had been sitting. His Paladin armor was cracked in spots. Charred gashes showed where the blaster bolts had hit. His left side twisted at unnatural angles.

          “No. No. This isn’t right. It was a car accident. Hunk said we never went to space! The ambulance took you to the hospital! I just need to know which one. Let me come get you!” Lance’s breath was coming out in gasps, his voice rising in hysteria. “You can’t be dead! We need you! Voltron won’t work without you! Shiro is going to completely lose it!” He gave into the tears, exhaustion creeping in as his sobs began to soften, “What are we going to do? What am I going to do? You can’t...you can’t be dead.” Lance gazed up at Keith, horror beginning to dance across his face, “It’s my fault. You died because I wasn’t fast enough. It’s all my fault. It should be me! Not you!”

          Keith looked alarmed and gestured at Lance to calm down, but Lance had sunk into the whirlpool of his dark thoughts. Keith sighed as he reached out to put his hand on Lance’s arm. A shock of burning cold jerked Lance back to attention. He stared uncomprehendingly at Keith. Keith slowly mouthed the words ‘Wake Up’ to him and vanished. Lance leaned back in surprise and toppled off the bed, slamming his head on the hardwood floor. Darkness descended.

  
  
          Lance woke up freezing. As he tried to sit up, he fell forward. Confused, he looked up. He was standing in what looked like map room. Stars sparkled as they hung in the sky. He was having trouble figuring out what was going on. Lance shifted a bit, to see Keith was holding him up, his violet eyes dancing with happiness. Lance felt a rush of relief so strong he felt lightheaded. Keith helped him stand up all the way. Lance pulled him in for a tight hug. Keith rubbed his back as he hugged Lance fiercely. Lance was trying to control the tears that threatened again.

           “You’re okay! I’m so happy to see you, things have been incredibly weird. It feels like weeks have gone by. I wasn’t in the pod that long was I? Or maybe it was all a really bizarre dream?” Lance knew he was rambling into Keith’s hair, but he didn’t want to move, afraid if he did Keith would vanish. Keith squeezed him again, then pulled back a little.

 “It’s all going to be okay, Lance. You have to do me one favor.” Keith looked far more serious than Lance ever remembered seeing him. He nodded vigorously.

 “Of course! Whatever you need! I missed you so much. I never...I never told you how much you meant to me. I-”

           Keith held up a hand, “I know. This is more important than that though.” At Lance’s hurt and confused look, Keith gave a sad sigh, “Listen closely. You are very important to me. And the team. You need to get back to them. They aren’t going to be able to form Voltron without you.” Keith narrowed his eyes as Lance opened his mouth to argue. Lance snapped it shut at the look. “I know you think I can take over Red again, but I can’t. They need you. But most importantly, I need you to do this, no matter what, don’t blame yourself.”

          Lance’s brain felt like it had been scrambled. What the hell was Keith talking about? They were going to head back to the lounge, then have lunch with everyone. He needed a bit more rest, because the pods took a lot out of you, but Keith was there and everything was fine.

          “Lance, I’m serious. Do this...for me. Don’t. Blame. Yourself. No matter what.” Keith said fervently as he pulled him into a bone crushing hug. “No matter _what_. You can’t blame yourself. It would insult me far too much if you did, and I know you love me enough not to do that. Just remember, I love you just as much.” The whisper of a kiss brushed his cheek. Then Keith continued, attempting not to sound choked up, “So, no blaming yourself or trying to sacrifice yourself. The others wouldn’t be able to handle it. Keep them safe.”

          Keith let go and stepped back. Lance tried to reach out but Keith was starting to fade. Lance took a step forward to follow, but he stumbled. Strong arms caught him. Blinking rapidly, he was able to focus a little. He was in the medbay. He looked up to find Hunk’s relieved face.

“Oh thank God! You're awake!” Hunk crushed him slightly in a bear hug and demanded. “How are you feeling?”

Deja vu ran over Lance. “How do you think I'm feeling? Like I got hit... by a car. How long was I out?” he tried carefully.

Hunk looked uncomfortable, “We should get you some food. The others will want to talk to you too. We should just do it all together. It’ll be...easier that way.”

          

          Lance frowned. Hunk was a terrible liar, but he could take a hint. Hunk got him settled with some food goo and then went to get the others. Lance thought he was hungry, but ended up toying with the food instead, his stomach tied in knots and thoughts whirling.

 The others filed in slowly. They all looked tired and drawn, like they hadn’t slept in days. Lance frowned harder. Something wasn’t right. _Again_.

          Once they were seated, Allura asked what he remembered. Lance shook his head. It was all such a jumble. Coran said, “You had a pretty nasty concussion, as well as a fairly serious cut on your head. You were out for at least four quintents.”

 Lance stared at him. Aside from the Deja vu again, he couldn’t believe he had been out that long.

           Allura started quietly, “We were taken off guard near Tastor. The planet was being mapped and explored by the Blade of Mamora, as a possible location for a base. We were there look into rumors that the Glara had already started building an outpost. Once we entered the system the Galra attacked. We were taking heavy fire in the Lions but managed to fight them back,” she paused. Her head drooped as she visibly swallowed back tears. After a moment, she raised her head, blinking rapidly. She cleared her throat she continued, “Then a cruiser appeared... with an almost fully charged Ion cannon.”  

Silence blanketed the room as Lance’s brows furrowed in thought. His gaze wandered over the others, pausing on Shiro, who was surprisingly quiet. Then a memory surfaced from his hazy brain.

 

He had been doing rapid attacks on some of the larger ships with Keith. 

By the time they saw the cruiser it was too late.

The blast hit both of them point blank.

The Lions had crashed into the planet below.

 

          Pidge threw a look to the others. She pushed the glasses up and briefly rubbed her eyes. Then she picked up the story, with an attempt at a smile, “The Castle served up some pretty rapid retribution on that cruiser!” Her smile faded, “We looked for both of you for hours. Then we called in the Blade. With their knowledge of the terrain, Hunk and I managed to engineer a tracking device. We were able to hone in on the Lions...two days later.” Pidge’s eyes flicked over to Shiro. Lance followed the motion discreetly, noticing how pale Shiro looked and how deep the circles under his eyes were.

          Hunk, looking almost as drawn as Shiro, took over after a quick glance at Pidge. “Kolivan and Antok went down to the planet. We would have stood out like sore thumbs. As far as anyone knew, the natives are pretty unfriendly and the Blade already knew how to avoid them. The rumors were true, there was an outpost being built, so Kolivan signaled for backup. It looked like the two of you had fought off more of the Galra at the crash site. The natives surprised everyone. They coordinated an attack with the Blade operatives and managed to destroy the outpost, as well as any remaining Galra.  Apparently, they were very impressed with your fighting skills and willingness to protect them. You scored us a solid alliance.”

          Hunk tried to smile, but it came out as a grimace. Lance frowned, but Hunk continued, his voice trembling, “Kolivan and Antok brought you and Keith back. You’ve been in a pod since. You scared us really badly.” Hunk’s voice was shaking now, “You..You faded in and out several times. Then, it looked like we...we were going to lose you. Your vitals almost flatlined. Then they suddenly stabilized.” Tears were rolling slowly down Hunk’s face.

          Lance studied the others, taking in all the details of how reserved they were, a deep frown on his face. Finally, he asked what had been bothering him all along, as he made eye contact with everyone. “So where’s Keith? He should be out of a pod by now. Or was he hurt worse than I was?”

The atmosphere became even more somber.

 

Shiro closed his eyes for a moment, then in a deeply pained voice said,

 

“Lance….Keith’s dead.”

 


End file.
